Warning Signs 2014

In September 2012 we published our first Warning Signs report, which was also the first in our series of annual sustainable transport reports. The report set out a comprehensive, yet summarised, picture of the state of sustainable transport in Scotland. Two years on we are publishing an update to assess whether or not Scotland is making progress on sustainable transport.

The report isolates a set of progress indicators with which we can measure whether we are moving towards or away from sustainable transport. These progress indicators are largely the same as those used in Warning Signs 2012.

Our determination of whether progress is being made against the indicators was carried out in both quantitative and qualitative terms. While the report features some primary research, we mainly focused on evaluating and presenting official statistics attractively, clearly, and with appropriate context to make them easy to comprehend. Progress against each indicator is then rated using ‘road sign’ symbols to summarise the current situation and extent of measures needed. In the sidebar underneath the road sign symbol, we have also summarised the indicator’s change compared with what we found in Warning Signs 2012. We conclude the report with a set of recommendations for action by local and national government and other bodies.

It has obviously been a large undertaking to attempt to comment on all aspects of sustainable transport in so few pages, and we accept that some people may feel that certain topics have not been covered, or not covered in enough detail. As such we would very much welcome your views on how these could be improved in future years, as well as how existing indicators could be improved. In a couple of cases, we have already identified the need for better data and we are receptive to any suggestions of where this could be obtained. Indeed, we would welcome any comments and we will consider them carefully for future versions of this report.